Civic Seal Units · Unit 2
Policy Advocacy Through a Bill
A High School Civics Project
Civic Seal Units · Unit 2
Policy Advocacy Through a Bill
A High School Civics Project
Grades 9 to 12 · 5 to 6 weeks, one 45-minute class or delegation meeting per week plus independent work
Teacher note. Fits between the delegation's first meeting and its bill deadline. Handouts: 1. Original Law Worksheet; 2. Memorandum of Support Template; 3. Cover Letter to an Official; plus the Policy Advocacy Rubric and your state's Youth and Government bill template.
What this project may count toward
New York
- May count as a High School Civics Project (Civic Participation)
- The School Civic Readiness Committee decides
Connecticut
- Can be documented as seal portfolio evidence
- File the bill, memo, letter, response and reflection as one entry
Rhode Island
- May count as the student-led civics project
- The district confirms
Teacher note. Nothing is guaranteed. In NY the source lists this as a possible 1.5 points, which may be earned twice in grades 9 to 12; confirm with the Seal Committee that it will be accepted and whether the student has used one of the two instances. In CT the State Department of Education sets the criteria and districts decide whether to offer the seal. In RI the district confirms.
You will be able to
- State a policy issue in one sentence and name the level of government responsible.
- Read the current law and explain what it does and does not do.
- Research and evaluate at least two solutions from other places.
- Write a bill that amends the real law, with a memorandum of support.
- Present in committee, deliver your recommendation to an official, and record the response.
What the project asks
Pick an issue. Weigh the policies. Recommend a fix. Tell an official. Explain how it changed you.
Teacher note. New York's High School Civics Project asks students to focus on a civic issue, analyze data and sources, evaluate at least two current public policies, recommend strategies, communicate the project, and explain how it changed their civic knowledge, skills and mindsets. A bill with a memorandum, sent to a real legislator, is designed to cover those elements. Students work alone or in pairs; each submits an individual memorandum and cover letter.
Week 1 · 45 min
The Issue and the Level of Government
- Which government?10 min
- Issue statements20 min
- Find the law15 min
Which government?
School and local
- Schools and school boards: district policy
- Towns and counties: local code
State
- State law
- What Youth and Government bills amend
Federal
- Federal issues get a resolution or memorial, not a bill
- Look for a state or local version
Teacher note. 10 minutes. Redirect students with federal issues to a state or local version of the same problem where possible.
Issue statements
Write your issue in one sentence. Put a number in it if you can.
- "Students in our district can be suspended for up to 20 days with no required instruction"
Teacher note. Pair share and sharpen.
Find the law
Find the section of state law that governs your issue. Start the Original Law Worksheet.
Teacher note. Model a search of the state's consolidated laws first. Homework: finish the worksheet.
Supporting Document 1
Original Law Worksheet
Issue, and level of government: School / Local / State / Federal
Citation: title, chapter, section
Where I found it
What it requires, in three plain sentences
When enacted or last amended, and by what bill
What it does not cover (the gap)
Who enforces it
Prior bills: number, year, sponsor, outcome
Week 2 · 45 min
Evaluate the Current Policy
- What the law actually does15 min
- Policy evaluation20 min
- Prior bills log10 min
What the law does
Explain your section to a partner without reading it aloud. Your partner writes down what they understood.
Teacher note. Gaps between what the student said and what the partner understood are the lesson.
Policy evaluation
- Is the current law achieving its purpose? Evidence?
- Who is harmed by the gap? Evidence?
- What has been tried? Search prior bills, note sponsors and fate
Prior bills log
Record at least one bill introduced on your topic in your state: number, year and status.
Teacher note. If no prior bill exists, that is itself a finding.
Week 3 · 45 min
Research Solutions
- Two other jurisdictions25 min
- Choose and justify15 min
- Advisor check5 min
Two other jurisdictions
How do two other states, districts or towns handle your issue? Record the citation, the approach and any result.
Teacher note. Reputable sources: the National Conference of State Legislatures, state education departments, legislative research offices, major news.
Choose and justify
Pick the approach to adopt or adapt. One paragraph: why this one, what it would cost, who would object.
Teacher note. Spend the last 5 minutes checking each worksheet and the two precedents.
Week 4 · 45 min
Write the Bill and the Memorandum
- The marking rule, with real text10 min
- Draft the bill25 min
- Begin the memorandum10 min
The marking rule
Paste the real section. Underline every added word. Strike every removed word.
Nothing underlined or struck means it is not a bill.
Teacher note. 10 minutes.
Draft the bill
- Purpose, definitions, provisions
- Justification from your Week 2 and 3 evidence
- Fiscal implications with a number and a source, or a reasoned estimate
- Environmental implications
- Effective date
Teacher note. The bill template format is the same in NY, CT and RI: title, sponsors, enacting clause, purpose, definitions, provisions, justification, fiscal and environmental implications, effective date.
Memorandum of Support
- Purpose
- Summary of Provisions, section by section
- Statement in Support: problem, current law and gap, why this approach
- Arguments Against and Responses
- Known Positions of Other Organizations
- Fiscal Implications, with a source
- Environmental Implications
- Effective Date, and why
Teacher note. Begin in class (10 minutes). Homework: finish the bill and memorandum, then do a peer format check with the Seal of State Approval checklist from Storybook County Lesson 1.
Week 5 · 45 min
Committee and Delivery
- Delegation committee30 min
- Cover letter15 min
Delegation committee
Record the technical questions and the strongest con argument.
Teacher note. Use the full Youth and Government hearing format. What students record goes into the memorandum's Arguments Against and Responses section.
Cover letter
Write to the real official with authority. Enclose your bill and memo. Ask for one specific thing.
- Sponsor it
- Meet with us
- Tell us why not
Teacher note. Use Supporting Document 3. The advisor reviews every letter before it is sent.
Week 6 · 45 min
Send, Log and Reflect
- Send15 min
- Second channel15 min
- Reflection15 min
Send
Send to at least one official with authority. Log the date and method.
Teacher note. Your own state legislator is the default. Add the committee chair with jurisdiction where the topic is clear.
Second channel
If your issue is local, submit written public comment to the school board or council, or sign up to speak. Log it.
Reflection
300 to 500 words.
- What the current policy does
- What I recommended and why
- What response I received or expect
- What I learned about how a recommendation reaches an official
- How this changed my civic knowledge, skills and mindsets
Teacher note. After the conference, add the committee ranking, chamber result and any Governor's action to the file, and send a one-paragraph update to the official contacted.
Policy Advocacy Rubric (100 rubric points)
- Issue and Level of Government: 10
- Original Law Worksheet: 20
- Policy Evaluation and Prior Bills: 15
- Solutions Research: 15
- The Bill: 15
- Memorandum and Cover Letter: 10
- Communication to Officials: 10
- Reflection: 5
Teacher note. Reflection is scored on being specific and honest about the response or the silence.
Evidence for your file
- Original Law Worksheet and prior bills log
- Two precedents with citations
- The bill and memorandum of support
- Cover letter and contact log
- Response received, or the silence
- Reflection, plus conference results
Teacher note. RI: this unit documents student choice (Week 1), reasoning from evidence (Weeks 2 and 3) and the link between state and local policy. CT: file these together as one portfolio entry.
Before you go
- What level of government owns your issue?
- Who is the one official you will write to, and what will you ask?
Teacher note. Support: a list of five state issues with the section identified, a memo fill-in frame, pairs splitting research. Challenge: a meeting with the official or staff, a second bill at a different level of government, or an op-ed as the second channel.
Your recommendation is on its way
Your school's committee or district decides how it counts
Eyes up here
Keyboard shortcuts and tips
- Right arrow or Page Down Next slide
- Left arrow or Page Up Previous slide
- Home or End First or last slide
- T Start or pause the timer
- R Reset the timer
- N Show or hide teacher notes
- B Blank the screen
- F Full screen
Project the slides from your laptop. Turn on Notes to see facilitation tips under the slide (keep them off while the screen is mirrored to students). Timed steps load their time into the timer automatically. Choose All slides to scroll or print every slide.